Against the Odds, a Run for Moscow Mayor

MOSCOW—When Alexei Navalny appeared at demonstrations that swept this city in late 2011 in the wake of disputed elections, his rousing denunciations of the ruling elite as a "party of crooks and thieves" electrified crowds. Some supporters even pushed to get him on the presidential ballot

But these days, the 37-year-old anticorruption activist's path looks increasingly circumscribed. Campaigning for Moscow mayor, he holds a handful of modest voter meetings a day. His backers say they will be overjoyed if he...